Bass & Walleye Boats articles from August 2004

Bass & Walleye Boats archives from August 2004

Gutsy performance.(Holeshot)(Editorial)
August 1, 2004... For as long as I can remember, the names Johnson and Evinrude have been synonymous with boating. My first outboard was a 6 hp Johnson, which never let me down in the bayous of Louisiana, and my best buddy's dad used to take us red-fishing in...

More on electronics!(Backwash)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... I love the magazine, but would like to see more on electronics and boat rigging. Regarding electronics: I would like to see info on how to rig, use and interpret what you see. Most owner's manuals are terrible in this regard. I would think this...

Must've been napping.(Backwash)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... I really enjoy the comparisons of different engines and props, and wish you would do more shootouts between boats like Allison, Bullet, Stroker and Gambler. Also, give us some more projects, such as a stock engine on a specific boat, then start...

A small favor.(Backwash)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... I would like to see more articles on smaller bass boats with smaller engines. I own a Ranger Sport R70 with a 115 hp Mercury. There are a lot of bass clubs here in Michigan with these smaller-sized boats because of the number of inland lakes....

The next 10 years.(Backwash)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... Congratulations to you and your team on the 10th anniversary of Bass & Walleye Boats. It's been said that launching a new magazine is like having a child, where you anxiously await its arrival, then hope you provide enough guidance and...

Digital difference.(Electronic Fisherman)(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... Pinpoint was the first to offer trolling motors with electronic speed controllers that didn't interfere with its bow-mounted fishfinders. The company had to specifically engineer its motors and fishfinders to work with each other without...

It's all in the dealer setup.(Seat Time)
August 1, 2004... For performance boat buyers and dealers alike, today's world is far different than it was just five years ago. Before, cost-conscious buyers shopped phone books, magazines and want-advertisers, and traveled great distances--sometimes even...

Bombardier introduces three new V-6 E-Tec outboards for 2005.(Around The Dock)(Brief Article)(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... We reported back in April that we were able to run one of the new E-Tec prototypes, and now the final versions are ready. Three direct-injection two-strokes will be added to the 2005 model-year line of Evinrude E-Tecs. These new outboard...

New outboard president joins Mercury.(Around The Dock)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Mercury Marine has a new president for its outboard business unit, a move that's part of the company's business strategy and three-year plan to strengthen and solidify its business and manufacturing process. The move has also caused shifts with...

Wholesale dollar boat sales up 15.6 percent; unit shipments down.(Around The Dock)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... This year started off with a healthy increase in boat sales. Wholesale dollar sales of all boats were up close to 16 percent in January compared to last year's numbers, while unit boat shipments were down 5.2 percent. This is based on the...

Humminbird, Minn Kota are now part of the same family.(Around The Dock)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Humminbird is now part of Johnson Outdoors' marine electronics group, which includes trolling motors and accessories sold under the Minn Kota name. In early May, Johnson Outdoors acquired Techsonic Industries Inc. from Teleflex Inc., a provider...

Navman Fish 4500 colorful compact: the Navman Fish 4500 offers a lot of performance crammed in a small package.(Fishfinder Test)(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... Navman is little known among bass and walleye anglers, but we expect that to change after getting to know the Navman Fish 4500. This unit's compact size and small footprint of its tilting swivel base allow it to fit almost anywhere, yet its...

Penda's Skid Resistor protects your truck in more ways than one.(Finders Keepers)
August 1, 2004... To help protect your truck's bed from abrasions and impacts, Penda Corporation (608/742-5301; pendacorp.com) has introduced a new bedliner that's said to be 30 percent more skid resistant than the next-largest aftermarket drop-in bedliner. The...

Dispensing Technologies' motorized gun dispenses two-part marine epoxies.(Finders Keepers)
August 1, 2004... A fully portable and cordless electric handheld adhesive dispenser for building and repairing all types of boats is available from DTIC Dispensing Technologies (877/367-3842; disptech.com). The EZ-mix HI Dispenser ($295) is a portable motorized...

XLF motor oil by Pennzoil Marine addresses declogging needs.(Finders Keepers)
August 1, 2004... Pennzoil Marine (800/990-9811; pennzoil.com) brings to market a marine motor oil designed specifically to keep performance-robbing carbon deposits from forming in the combustion chamber, piston tops and under crowns and piston combustion rings....

Albackore's 36D Utility Box makes organizing tackle a snap.(Finders Keepers)
August 1, 2004... Bass anglers can never have enough tackle storage, but until now, individual storage trays have been pretty shallow, limiting what they could hold. Expanding upon its Fishing Tackle Backpack, Albackore Sportfishing Gear (818/704-5731;...

Classic Package: we test a Mercury 250 Verado-powered Triton Tr 21 X, the official rig of this year's Bassmaster Classic.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... We've heard it all when talking about four-stroke outboards: "They're too heavy; they don't accelerate; bass boats can't handle the weight; there's no holeshot; performance is poor." I've said from the start that weight won't be an issue....

Digital duo: we challenge MotorGuide's claim that its new Digital Guardian control system eliminates fishfinder interference.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... If your parents did their job, you've probably heard that when something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Your folks should also have warned you that every now and then, an exception to that rule comes along. [ILLUSTRATION...

Multitasker: Charger's new 190 SUV proves itself as a multifunction, multispecies fishing machine that can handle big water.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... Although primarily a manufacturer of quality high-end bass boats, Charger entered the multispecies market two years ago with its prototype 210 SUV. Bass & Walleye Boats tested the company's first production boat, and last summer, we tested a...

Reeding and arithmetic: we install Hydro-Tec's new fiber reeds on a Yamaha 250 HPDI for blistering acceleration and improved fuel economy.
August 1, 2004... WE'VE DONE SEEMINGLY COUNTLESS TESTS ON OUTBOARD REEDS MANUFACTURED BY EVERYONE AND THEIR BROTHERS, AND WE'VE REPORTED OVERALL IMPROVEMENTS IN RUNNING QUALITY, AND IN A FEW CASES, A SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT IN LOW-END AND MIDRANGE ACCELERATION. YET...

Adrenaline rush: G3's new HP 200 bass boat feels and performs like a high-end fiberglass model.(Product/Service Evaluation)(Cover Story)
August 1, 2004... Running high and dry, the HP 200 bass boat from G3 gave us an incredibly smooth ride in a mild, 1-foot chop during a test on Pomme de Terre Reservoir in central Missouri this past May. Powered by a Yamaha 200 VMax OX66, the boat accelerated...

Just add water: RiverPro's shallow-running 2072 LoPro fishes like a bass boat, but planes in just 12 to 15 inches of water.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... The guy in the kayak saw us coming and got all white-knuckled on his gunwales as he anticipated the wake. We nodded respectfully from our seats aboard the sleek, mustard-colored craft as we swept by at about 30 mph on our way upstream, leaving...

A hitch for your get-along: install a Draw-Tite Max Frame hitch on a Ford Explorer in less time than it takes to tie a Palomar--well, practically.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2004... We've received several letters from readers asking for more articles on simple do-it-yourself projects, and at the same time, we've promised readers that we'd feature a few automotive and trailer how-to pieces. With that in mind, we installed a...

ProCrafts are not Bullets.(Shop Talk)
August 1, 2004... I have a 2003 ProCraft SP210DC with a 2003 Mercury 250XS on a 10-inch fixed jackplate that I purchased from Jaco's. I'm running a small hub, 27-inch-pitch Trophy propeller on it. The motor height was set at 25 1/2 inches from the hooks on the...

Mixed company.(Shop Talk)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... I have a 1998 Johnson 225, and have been using Castrol Syntec engine oil since Day One. Now Castrol is discontinuing its synthetic oil. Can I simply change back to an ordinary TC-W3 oil, or do I have to empty/clean out the old oil from the oil...

Four-stroke hop-up.(Shop Talk)
August 1, 2004... With all the recent hoopla over four-stroke outboards, I'm now considering one for my next bass boat. Before I take this idea to the next level, however, I'd like to know what sorts of aftermarket parts are available for them. For...

Old Mercs never die (except when loading).(Shop Talk)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... I have a 1976 115 hp Mercury outboard motor. When the boat is launched, it starts and runs fine at high and low speed. I can troll all day with no problems. When I run back to the dock, kill the engine, put the trailer on ramp and restart the...

Triangulation.(Shop Talk)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... I was shopping for a new transom saver last weekend and my local boat dealer tried to talk me into the type that has a rubber insert in the shank. My logic tells me this defeats the purpose of the transom saver because the engine can still...

A well-suited Yar-Craft.(Hot Rigs)
August 1, 2004... As a veteran angler of more than 30 years, Ken Johnson knows a thing or two about the type of boat he needs. Not too long ago, he switched from an aluminum boat and purchased a 2000 Yar-Craft 1895 Storm, which came with many of the pro walleye...

Sweating the details.(A Jones for Boats)
August 1, 2004... When we buy a boat, do we really do it for the right reasons? It would be nice if we were all conversant in the intricacies of reverse chines and the hydrodynamic principles that make one boat more efficient than the next, but we're not. We...